Fire extinguisher



Apr. .24, 1923.

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/NVENTQR a er o//lson ,.4 no@ NE y Patented apru 24, 1923.

UNITE [sT LUTHER ROBINSON, or ELDoRADo, KANSAS.'

FIRE EXTINGUISHER.

applicati@ mea Api-i1 1,

To all whom it may concern Be itlrnown that I, 'LUTHER RoBrNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Eldorado, in the county of .Butler and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in. Fire Extinguishers; and I do declare'the following 'to be a full', clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the artv to whichitappertainsto make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, kwhichform ak part of thisspecification. a

This invention relates to fire extinguishers and one of the objects of the invention is to provide a novel, effective construction of re extinguisher, the mechanism of which is so arranged that a suitable liquid may be stored within a mainreservoir to be acted upon by gaseous pressure generated in a gas generating reservoir, the liberation of certain chemicals t-o generate the gaseous pres sure being under the control of the operator so that it will exert pressure-upon the liquid to force it from the container to be sprayed over'the ame.

Carbon tetrachloride may be used in the main cylinder for extinguishing the fire and a Suitble gas 'generating chemical may be employed in the gas generating chamber within vthe reservoir. I prefer to -utilize `soda and diluted sulphuric acid. rlhe soda may be contained within the gas generating chamber in solid formy but the sulphuric acid may be held in a disruptible container which, under the control of the operator, may be disrupted or broken so that the contents of, the container may be discharged over the soda to combine therewith' and generate gas which mayescape from the gas generating'chamber to exert pressure upon the fire extinguishing liquid, such as the carlbon tetrachloride and force itk through a nozzle, from which it may be directed upon the blaze.

I am aware thatcarbon tetrachloridehas been employed hitherto in connection with fire'extinguishers in which the liquid was ejectedV from the reservoir by means of prestiveposition, and. f

Fig. 3 1s a Udetail perspective view lof the 1921. serial No. 457,629.

sure generated from a pump piston.k A mechanical pump is objectionable fork use in connection with a. light, portable firefextin guisher because the operators attention is so closely confined to the pumping action that the stream of fire extinguishing liquid or vapor is liable toy be misdirected.

With my invention, just as 'soon' as the acid envelope is disrupted or brokenand the gas generates, pressure 1s immediately applied to the liquid so thatithe operators at-` directing the pull rod'showingia detent for preventing pumping actionof the rod.

Referring nowto the drawings by numerals of reference: v 1 designates Aay cylindrical container in whichmay bea suitableliquidwQ,y such as carbon tetrachloride.y One end of thel cylinder 1 is closed by a cover orhead 3 which has a threaded flange, 3" engaging the threaded portion 4l of the cover. The central portion of the cover 3 is provided with a cylinder 5, extending into the container 1 and provided with a circumferential flange 6, to which is-'fastened the cylindrical wall 7 of the gasformingchamber 8. The bottom of. the cylindrical. wall 7 isclosed by a plug or end 9, having a threaded portion 10 surrounding an opening 11 and having an internally threaded portion 12 to receive the threaded portion 13of a fixed `tube i141, which extends practically'to thefclosed end of the container 1.v Said tube also. serves as a packinggland for the packing 15 aboutthe l opening 11.

`VVithin-the cylindrical portiony or neck 5 of the part yQ-isla packing gland 16, which surrounds a tubular member 17, kextending through said gland which 4is connected at its i upper end to a tubular casing or head 18. which is closed by a threaded plug 19.

` it is connected by a tubular connector 23 to the stem 20. The tubular connector 23 has an end slightly greater in diameter than the steinl which ,is adaptedto abut' against gthe'vendofthe connefztorlS,v will bc presently described.

' `lVithin the gas'gencrating chamber 6 is 'a piston 24. fastened to the tube 18, the

flower end 'of whiclncarries a tube 25, ex-

tendingl throughthe opening' 11 in the part 9 and into the fixed tube 14. Thepiston 21 Yis provided with alplurality of'openings 26,

into one of which' a projectingportion 2T oi? a r'dis'ruptible, acid-containingenvelope or container 28 n'iayiit, the Yopposite -end being adapted to bear: against' the gland 16 and the flange 6. The piston 24 and the flange A 6*"constit'ute lclutching jaws or disrupting membersI tor the' envelope 2S so that when one of the jaws` moves 'toward the other, the envelope, which may'b'efot easily disruptible 's f materialsuchjas lead vor the like, usually 'temploye'd 'in tubes ofV like character, may bey easily disrupted. The holes 26 permit the "re-leased uacidto pass intol the lower portion ofthe/gas generatingchamber toV come in contact Witha" 'secondchemicah preferably soda', 'asindic'ated 'at`29," sothat gas will be generated therein. The'piston 24 is of -less i 'diameter thanfthe'finterioi' diameter oi' the gas forming"chamber so Ethat the Vacid may also r lt'nt/"d'o'ivn over the perimeter-thereof.

4*There isa'valVe 80i`or normally closing the"'escapeport31 orthe "gas generating fchamber "and said valve is provided with a stem 32,- p'rojecting through'one' of ythe openvings 26 and provided with jaw or pistongrasp i the handle I21 and pull yupwardly thereon.v The first pull will resulti'n causingl the connector 23 to have its end contact with the topv of the part 18, sliding it out Y i "en'g'g'a'ging portions 33' and 34.

' -VVhen the"par`ts 4are all assembled, as

" shown in Figi 1 and it is desired to cause the device to function. the operator may -r`oflits recess 35'in`the 'cover 3, the operation l causingthe opening 36-tor the part 23 to positionedinthe'space 37l so that it can discharge thereinto rand allow the-liquid' to escapethrough the-ditfuser nozzle 38 in themember v18?Upo'n the pull oi' the handle '21, the Yfollowery oripistony 211 \Villf1nove -tof ward the abutment or jaw 6, causing the en velope 28 containing' the acid to be crushed or disrupted so that the acid will feed onto lthe soda 29, causing the gasto be generated therein.

At the same upward movement oi the follower or piston,2'1, it will come in contact with thestop 33,'-raising the'valve 30 o'l' its seat to allow the^gas to escape on top of the liquidk forced into the tube 14 through the pipe 25, through the tubular member 17, through 18, through openings 36 and through escape port 31.

Any tendency of the operator to pump the handle 21 will be eliminated by the detent 22 which,` as soon as thehandle'is pulled out to the position shown' in l? 2, will swing outwardly under 'the action' ot its spring 38 and prevent a.' return movement oi' the stem 20 until the detent 22 istiforcibly `moved back into itsrec'ess 39 againstfthe action of the spring 38', this being done only upon reloading the device.

It Willl be apparentthat the gas thus geni erated Will'forcibly empty the container'l'by gas pressure so that the'operatorneed only confine his attention to directingthe'stream Jfrom '38 ontothe fire. y

The envelope i'vill*maintain-the acid in a proper condition practically yindelinitely so that there Willfbe' vno "danger 'ot' deterioration causing failure of the apparatus so long as the partsfare heldl in thefposition shown in Fig. n 1, the device being ready for use justas soon as theenvelope is disrupted by pulling on the'handle 21.k

I prefer to use a'lead envelope beca-use it is not easily 'attacked by -rsulphuric 'acid and because a :ilexib-ledisruptible envelope can be advantageously used instead 'of glass, the glass-being of such'inatur'e that'it will have a tendency tostopupfthe openings-or the ducts through which the liquid is to be ad- 'mitted It will' be apparent-'from 'the' foregoing that a device constructed in accordance with my' invention will be lsimple infoperation, easy to manufacture and Willreadily perform the function for which itL is intended.

What 1" claim land'desire' to secure by -Letllt y ed to combine with the first to generate gas,

named tube and the mein' vportion -of the `container outside of the chamber, and al nozzle connected to the other end of the tube 15 for discharging the liquid from the conf .tainer to atlnospherelf In testimony whereof I affix Iny sivnature. 

